Whether or not you have a disc burner, Studio can also create a “disc image” – a set of files containing the same information that would be stored onto the disc – to a directory on your hard drive. The image can subsequently be burned to disc.

CD formats

If your system is equipped with a CD burner or a DVD burner, Studio can create VCD or S‑VCD discs on either CD‑R or CD‑RW media.

Your VCD discs can be played back:

·On a VCD or S‑VCD player.

·On some DVD players. Most DVD players can handle CD‑RW media, but many will not reliably read CD‑R. A majority of DVD players can handle the VCD format.

·On a computer with a CD or DVD drive and MPEG‑1 playback software (such as Windows Media Player).

Your S‑VCD discs can be played back:

·On an S‑VCD player.

·On some DVD players. Most DVD players can handle CD‑RW media, but many will not reliably read CD‑R. DVD players sold in Europe and North America usually cannot read S‑VCD discs; players sold in Asia often can.

·On a computer with a CD or DVD drive and MPEG‑2 playback software.

DVD, HD DVD and Blu-ray

If your system has a DVD burner, Studio can create three types of DVD disc: standard (for DVD players), HD DVD format for HD DVD players, and AVCHD format for Blu-ray players.

If your system has an HD DVD or Blu-ray recorder, you can record onto any recordable media supported by the device.

Your standard DVD discs can be played back:

·On any DVD player that can handle the recordable DVD format your burner creates. Most players can handle the common formats.

·On a computer with a DVD drive and suitable playback software.

·On any HD DVD player.

Your DVD or HD DVD disc in HD DVD format can be played back:

·On any HD DVD player, including a drive-equipped Microsoft Xbox 360.

·On a computer with an HD DVD drive and suitable playback software.

Your Blu-ray disc, or DVD disc in AVCHD format can be played back:

·On the Panasonic DMP‑BD10, the Playstation 3, and other Blu-ray players (not all players support the AVCHD format, but most do).

·On a computer with a Blu-ray drive and suitable playback software.

Outputting your movie

Studio creates your disc or disc image in three steps.

1.First the entire movie must be rendered to generate the MPEG-encoded information to store on the disc.

2.Next, the disc must be compiled. In this phase, Studio creates the actual files and directory structure that will be used on the disc.

3.Finally, the disc must be burned. (This step is skipped if you are generating a disc image rather than an actual disc.)

To output your movie to disc, or to a disc image:

1.Click the Disc tab to bring up this display:

The two circular displays summarize your disc usage. The upper one shows the amount of hard drive storage that will be required during the making of your movie, and the other shows an estimate of the time the movie will occupy on your writable disc.

Use the upper folder button to change the hard drive location Studio uses for storing auxiliary files. If you are creating a disc image, it will also be stored in that folder. The matching button on the lower display lets you choose which burning hardware to use, if you have more than one device available.

If you wish to fine-tune your output settings, choose the Custom preset then click the Settings button to bring up the Make Disc options panel.

3.Click the green Create disc button. Studio goes through the steps described above (render, compile, and if necessary burn) to create the disc or disc image you have specified in the Make Disc options panel.

4.When Studio has finished the burning operation, it ejects the disc.

Quality and capacity of disc formats

The differences amongst the various disc formats can be boiled down to these rules of thumb regarding the video quality and capacity of each format:

·VCD:Each disc holds about 60 minutes of MPEG-1 video, with about half the quality of DVD.

·S-VCD:Each disc holds about 20 minutes of MPEG-2 video, with about two-thirds the quality of DVD.